What clients say about Uptown Auto Repair in Darrington (WA)
Uptown Auto is the gold standard. Period.
I was in a real bind when my Jeep broke down—one of those situations where stress is high and you’re bracing yourself for bad news. Tripper didn’t just fix the problem; he took control of the situation and made it happen.
From diagnosis to execution, he went way above and beyond the call of duty. Not “good service.” Not “solid work.” This was extraordinary. The kind of effort and integrity you never see anymore. He exceeded my expectations so completely that it honestly caught me off guard—in the best way.
In my six decades on this planet, I can say without hesitation that Tripper is the most honest, reliable, hardworking mechanic I’ve ever dealt with. No games. No upselling. No nonsense. Just competence, transparency, and pride in doing the job right.
If I ever move away, I will still make the drive to Uptown Auto without a second thought—because when Tripper and his crew touch your vehicle, you have absolute confidence that it’s done right. That kind of trust is priceless.
If you’re looking for a mechanic you can actually rely on—someone who treats your problem like it’s his own—Uptown Auto is it. Tripper is the real deal.
Uptown Auto Repair is the spot-no question. Took my Toyota Tacoma in, and they nailed it. My four-wheel drive axle was toast, brakes were sketchy, and the lights were barely cutting it. These guys jumped on it, fixed the axle solid, got the brakes feeling brand new, and tuned the lights so they actually light up the road. All done fast, 100% professional, and never once left me with a half-job-everything worked exactly how I needed, no shortcuts. Prices were the lowest I'd ever seen, straight-up honest. If you want real work from real pros, go to Uptown. Ten stars, easy.
Rolled in with a flat on our rv box truck. The mechanic said he usually didn’t work with stuff this large but made it happen, swapped my spare for me and told me the socket size I’d need to do it myself. Answered a bunch of helpful questions and only charged me $20 bucks
Stopped in during a roadtrip to get a check engine light looked at. They quickly looked at the car code even without an appointment and were able to diagnose it within minutes. Super nice dudes and great service!
If you are in need of a trustworthy and honest pair of mechanics to resolve your cars issues this is the shop you can count on!
Cars are complex machines and these guys will figure it out and fix it fast with the best prices around!
Thank You Tripper!
My van broke down near Darrington while I was on a road trip through the area. I had it towed to Uptown based on reviews mentioning quick service, and can confirm that this is accurate! Tripper and his team will go out of their way to get you back on the road as quickly as possible. They had a backlog of vehicles in the shop, but were able to fix my van within a few hours. On top of that they are very friendly and fairly priced.
One of the nicest and most helpful shops, we got stuck with some auto trouble and found this shop. Not only did they get us back on the road, but even suggested some unique hikes in the area during our stay. Highly recommend.
Working in the forest nearby, and messed up my bumper. They really helped me out and got my car useable again quickly. Nicest mechanics I’ve ever met in my life! 100% recommend.
When my vehicles front drivers side caliper failed, they replaced it within a day. Not soon after, I had to slam my brakes to avoid an accident. Perfectly done, smooth, and without issue. They did an excellent job
I caught these folks as they were closing, just hoping to use their air hose and they discovered a screw in my tire. As it was almost 30 minutes past closing, I figured they would send me to an auto parts store for a can of fix-a-flat. Instead they, without hesitation, pulled my tire off, removed the screw and fully repaired the hole in the tire.
They even torqued the tire back on to the exact specs for the car! All while being super friendly and way more economical than I expected. Grateful would be an extreme understatement.
If I lived in the area, I wouldn’t trust anyone else with my vehicles.
Came in yesterday with a flat tire I was gonna have to limp to Arlington, asked if he had any air, said absolutely it's right there, even asked if I needed a tire gauge. Very helpful and friendly. After a rough day I appreciate the kindness, Thank you very much
Had a flat tire while driving the loop road, and wouldn’t you know it my spare was flat also. These folks were the only air available in the area and were very gracious about filling our spare tire…
I wish that I could give 100 stars! We were camping in North Cascades in a rental, and ended up getting something in our tire. They were able to get us in right away and fix our tire. We are so appreciative and thankful!
When you call and make your appointment make it quite clear why you are bringing it to them. Don't have what has happened to me happen to you. Otherwise they are great people to work on your vehicles.
We had a flat tire on our way to North Cascades and when we arrived, we realized there wasn't a tire shop for about an hour in every direction. After calling around looking for something closer, I found these guys and they were awesome. They squeezed me in the next day, plugged the flat quickly, and did it all at a very reasonable price!
These guys are top notch, with no BS. Have never had a bad experience, always great service at a great price. Tripper is a magician. The office gal is really cute too 😁
Uptown is an amazing company and community asset. They are honest and knowledgable. The team has helped Glacier Peak Institute out numerous times so we can get back to running programs. They go out of there way to support customers and the community!
I used Uptown Auto Repair to repair a flat sustained on the Moutain Loop Hwy outside of Darrington. I was really impressed by their courteousness, speed at taking me without an appointment (15 minutes), and cost. $18.53 for a tire patch when I considered myself to be at their mercy. I was back on the road within 70 minutes. If I'd called AAA, I'd have still been sitting on the side of the road for a couple of hours before they even came to put on the spare, much less repair the tire.
On the way home from hiking my car broke down in the area. Had it towed to their garage and left the key in the overnight slot.
Despite the garage being backed up a few weeks, they were able to take a look and diagnose the problem on the first business day they were open.
They asked what my budget was and worked within my parameters. I always felt like they had my interests at heart, not the business bottom line. They offered suggestions/alternatives when the repair exceeded my budget.
Everyone I worked with was responsive, professional, courteous, and knowledgeable. If I were local to the area I'd love to give them my regular business!
Had a minor accident I'm the mountains. On my way back to Seattle I stopped to have the mechanic look at my car. He was super friendly and helpful and gave me the advice that was best for me and not the business. Highly recommend.
TOO FUNNY!!!!!
I spent an hour or so writing what I consider a Most Excellent review of Uptown Auto Repair but I wrote so much I went way past the allowable word count. That's how many positive things I have to say about Uptown Auto Repair.
So, let me try to shorten things to the nuts & bolts of it all. We are city and bought a place in a Cascade Mountain Valley about 50 miles North East of Darrington, the home of Uptown Auto Repair.
As Producers, when we lived in Arlington a decade earlier we checked out Darrington for concert purposes. Back then I drove a 2-door 1973 Plymouth Satellite. For those who don;t know, call it the luxury version of a Road Runner and it could still be cloned into a GTX. A bit of early 1970's Muscle Car FUN!!!!!
This is important as I was a it of a gear head so took notice of the 104 (maybe more) Octane Rating when we pulled up to the gas pumps in Darrington. I quickly learned that Darrington isn't just a sweet community tucked into the Cascades with many mountain related activities. Nor is it just a concert town. They have a Race Tack too!!!!!
They have their own producers and productions so didn't really need us but it was a nice trip. A decade later, now living way up here and having multiple older vehicles needing repair, we eventually found more than a handful of "back yard" mechanics. Over the next few years the best of the bunch passed-on while others moved on hence we found ourselves in need of a real mechanic that is stable and actually HONORS GUARANTEES.
HONORING GUARANTEES is IMPORTANT TOO!!!!! We are multi-generational LOYAL Les Schwab customers. I also used to use Elliot Tires in Bothell so my son used them in Skagit County. But, in Skagit County they were NOT HONORABLE nor would the other "Good Year" shops including other Elliot Tire shops HONOR the Elliot Tire Warranties from their location in Skagit County.
One of the issues was a water pump issue. Elliot Tires installed for around $600.00 but part of what brought us to Uptown Auto Repair was the gasket to that water pump was leaking heavily. One of the Elliot Tire Shops in King County actually tried to sell my son yet another water pump for yet another $600.00. That was just one in a growing list of expensive time consuming examples so Elliot Tires lost us as customers.
We asked the right hand man of one of our passed-on mechanics who he would recommend. He said Uptown Auto Repair of Darrington. We also asked our local Fire Chief who has 5 nice FORD pick-ups. He said Uptown Auto Repair. So, we gave Uptown Auto Repair a try and have NEVER BEEN DISAPPOINTED with their work, advice, etc.: Sure, disappointed in the price when it came to rebuilding my son's 1983 Ramcharger as we simply can't afford it at this time. But it had nothing to do with Uptown Auto Repair where the price for labor is around 25% LESS than what we'd pay in King County.
"Nana Nikki" and I ("Papa") have 5 adult children whom all drive & 10 surviving grandchildren whom will be driving soon enough. We also have more than 10 vehicles between all of us and only 2 were bought brand new. We are more old school so buy vehicles in the $750.00 - $2,000.00 range. Vehicles that are older so need inspected then bit of work Some of the work we an do ourselves, but some of the work takes Real Pros with a Pro Shop complete with Pro tools. For us, that place is Uptown Auto Repair.
Darrington is an old school racing town. The owner of Uptown Auto Repair, Tripper, worked there for going on 20-years before he bought the place. Tripper, who is actually relatively young still, has stayed current, in part, by hiring eager minds such as a young man named, Tyler. So, I sense this is going to be one of those generational things with us as their faithful, loyal long term customers.
Sure, it cost to fix the water pump but at least it has remained fixed. They have also saved us from unnecessary repairs but I'm out room to tell you about it. Maybe I'll do a "Page 2". Meanwhile, you can't go wrong with
UPTOWN AUTO REPAIR
Thank you Uptown for fixing our car on the spot! We had a rock stuck in our wheel and mechanic Tyler came right away to fix it in under 10 minutes. Great customer service!
Tripper is an awesome assistance and honest mechanic that walked us through the process of getting stranded. You knew he cared and did his best to help resolve our situation. 10/10 would recommend.
Amazing service and hospitality. Trapped a mile away from the town, Tripper was professional and friendly. Felt extremely welcome and ther attitude changed this experience from a negative one to a great one.
This is the only place I get my vehicles worked on. I live in Seattle, but drive up here for the customer service and quality work done by Tripper and Johnny.
Tripper, the head mechanic, is a fair and friendly guy. Our vehicle broke down just outside Darrington. He and his crew helped us get the car to the shop, even pushing it the last few hundred yards. The shop went out of the way to get a part from a nearby town so we could be back on the road in the same day. There is a reason he is so well-liked by all the folks around here we've talked to!
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